Cervical disease
 

I took my Dakota to a holistic vet yesterday. He took X-rays and finds that he has cervical disease. He woke one morning not being able to walk. The vet tells me that acupuncture may help but he is not certain. He said he will need treatment for the rest of his life. Right now he is taking prednisone and milk thistle fir his liver. He gave me pain pills to give him if needed. He keeps shaking his head and trying to rub it on the ground quite a bit. Not sure why he is doing that. Does anyone have any experience with this disease. I have opted to continue with the medication for now. This came on so suddenly.

How old is your baby ? & is your vet sure there is no AAI ? if no AAI then absolutely accupuncture can help. Also you can read about VOM in the YT library. V=veterinary O=orthopedic M=manipulation. VOM is basically Chiropractic care using the manual Activator or a similar electric tool & works very well & fast. I much prefer using this method as there is basically no down time & no toxic meds needed.

Alright no holistic vet is qualified enough to rule out boney abnormalities of the spine. You really do need to see a specialist. Yorkies can suffer from AAI or Chiaria. Also the rubbing of the head can be indicative of both cervical discomfort and Liver toxicity.

So why is your boy on milk thistle? Did you have Blood Tests done? Specifically BATS to test for liver function?

Cervical disease
 

Dakota is 9 years old. The dr did not mention AAI. He showed me the area on the X-ray where a bone spur formed. He explained that it is the body's way of trying to fix the problem. To add strength to the neck. He listed the diagnosis as intervertebral disease. He told me he was not a candidate for chiropractic at this time.
Since he is on prednisone and has been for about three weeks now we wanted to give some support to the liver. The X-ray showed the liver to be enlarged and likely from the steroid use. He also noted his heart enlarged a bit but no murmur.
I scheduled an acupuncture treatment for Monday morning. He had a good past two days. Walking and even picking up the pace a bit. Sad in that he was moving fast and then fell on his face. He quickly slowed down went to potty and was ready to come back in the house.
I appreciate the information posted. I am hoping the acupuncture helps.
Thank you.

Sending prayers up for your baby! I don't have any experience with this but it sounds so painful for you and Dakota. Keep us posted on his progress.

No with a bone spur chiro is definitely contra-indicated. Acupuncture will not "fix" the problem, but it can help with pain management.

If you have been using a holistic vet over the lifetime of your pet; I suspect that you may be not so open to more regular vets and especially specialists.

I say everyone has their time and place. With suspected bone anomalies especially in the spine, I would be seeking a second opinion and confirmation of diagnosis with an osteopaedic specialist.

That bone spur may actually be compromising a nerve - hence the falling on his face when "he" picked up the pace. Please don't allow your boy to run or jump off or onto furniture until you get a more complete picture of what is going on with him structurally.

IVD is a rather generic term, kind of like Chondromalacia Patella Syndrome. You truly do need to know more. Get some ideas of treatment options and outcomes from same.

I too have a boy with a boney pathology, not in the cervical spine but the lumbar spine. How-ever I did elect to do a full diagnostic spectrum of tests that helped to delineate exactly what/where it was, the severity of same, and then explored many other treatment modalities other than surgery (which by the way he wasn't a candidate for). My holistic vet works in co-operation with many specialists to help determine the best course of care for my dog.

WE currently use a program of care that includes, physio, underwater treadmill work, acupuncture and supplements.

My yorkie has IVDD throughout her spne. The problem in her cervical area has gotten much better over time.

Because your pup is having neuro involvement, a neurologist really should be consulted. If you are one that would consider surgery, a neurologist definitely needs to assess. Disc material is not something xray is good for although soinal changes can often be seen. A neurologist should take a look.

There are many opinions on the best course of action for these dogs. Included in the decision is the overall health of the dog, if there are neuro symptoms, the probability that more discs will go, etc. I can pass on the opinion of the neurologist who conferred on my dog's case. Her xrays showed obvious disease, but she was squirmy, so they were not the best. His opinion is that absolutely no chiropractic care, acupuncture, or hydrotherapy shoud be done until better imaging was obtained (if I decided to do so) because these things can make the problem worse.